Service tray



Nov. 7, 1933. w. 1.. MOGINLEY 1,934,271

SERVICE TRAY Filed April 2, 1951 2 SheetsSheet 1 INVENTOR VIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIHIJ 4 I I5 BY ATTO RN EYS Nov. 7, 1933. w L, MCGINLEY 1,934,27I

SERVICE TRAY Filed April 2, 193 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR ATTORNEYS Patented Nov. 7, 1933 UNITED STATES SERVICE TRAY William L. McGinley, Dallas, Tex., assignor to Tray Service Company, Dallas, Tex., a corporation of Texas Application April 2, 1931. Serial No. 527,182

. 13 Claims.

This invention relates to detachable service trays adapted to be mounted upon vertical supports such as automobile doors for curb service The general purpose of the invention is to provide an improved tray of the above type which will be capable of universal use either upon the outside or inside of the doors or windows of closed cars with the usual glass closure up or down as desired, also upon the doors of touring or other open cars and other vertical supports.

A further purpose of the invention is to provide a tray of this type having legs for supporting upon a fiat surface, such legs being so arranged as to permit more compact, more efiective 5 stacking or nesting of advantage both in shipping and in use. 1

A further purpose of the invention is to provide the combination with a service tray of means for supporting a price ticket or check thereon so as to be readily accessible and to prevent its becoming soiled or dampened by the contents of the tray.

The foregoing and other purposes or objects of the invention are attained in the service tray illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described below. It is to be understood that the invention is not limted to the specific form thereof shown and described.

Of the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a bottom plan view of a service tray embodying the invention;

Figure 2 is a section on line 2--2 of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a top plan view of the brace; Figure 4 is a section on line 44 of Figure 2; Figure 5 is a section through a closed car door showing in full lines a tray mounted in one manner upon the inside of said door and illustrating in dotted lines extension of the brace to the inner side face of the door if required or necessary, this view also illustrating in dotted lines either of two modes of mounting the tray upon the outside of the door, i. e. with the brace extended or collapsed;

Figure 6 is a section through an open car door showing the mode of mounting the improved tray thereon; and

Figure 7 is a view in elevation showing the mode in which the trays may be stacked or nested.

Referring to the drawings, the numeral 10 designates a tray which may be provided with comparatively short legs 11, 11 as by securing two strips of metal 12, 12 to the under side of the tray as. by rivets 13, 13, the strips 12 being downwardly off-set from the bottom of the tray as at 5 12 12 for a purpose later to be explained and bent downwardly at their ends to provide the legs 11. Certain of the legs and, as shown in the drawings, preferably all of the legs 11 are extended beyond the edges of the tray. The legs preferably are bent downwardly just beyond the tray edges and are also preferably inclined outwardly from the bottom of the tray. One pair of the legs 11 provide hook members which may be used to hook the tray onto the edge of a vertical support such as an automobile door and which are provided with 5 sleeves or coverings 11 of yielding or cushioning material such as rubber, the coverings 11 preferably extending over the off-set portions 12*. The oiT-set portions of strips 12 at their other ends are also preferably provided with similar sleeves or coverings 11 While a tray as described above is capable of use on closed cars by engagement of one pair of legs 11 in between the edge of the window opening in a car door and the glass, it is desirable to asso- 7(5 ciate with the tray a suitable brace means which may be used to assist in supporting the tray in this manner and also to support the tray effectively upon any vertical support including the doors of open cars. 0

To this end a brace 14 may be associated with the tray. This brace may be of that type shown in the patent to James M. McGinley No. 1,760,912 which is collapsible so as to permit the tray to rest evenly upon a flat surface and also to permit stack- 5 ing. This brace need not be described in detail here, it being sufficient to. say that the brace is pivotally and slidably mounted on a strip of metal 15 secured to the under side of tray 10 whereby it may be collapsed to a position under the tray as ,shown in Figure 2, or extended from the tray to brace the same in any required position of adjustment ,as shown in Figure 6.

As shown in the full line position in Figure 5, the tray is adapted to be supported on the inside of a car door with the glass closed by engagement of one pair of legs 11 between the edge 16 of the slot through which the glass is adjusted and the inner face of the glass 17, and if desired the brace 14 may be extended and adjusted to the inside face of the door as shown in dotted lines to aid in support of the tray. It will be understood that in a great many cases the legs alone will be sufli- -cient support. Thus the occupants of the car may be served in cold weather with the glass 17 closed.

The tray may also be supported upon the outside of the closed car door in a similar way with the brace 14 either collapsed or extended as indicated in dotted lines in Figure 5. In this case of course the glass 17 may be lowered to its open position.

, comparatively short legs for supporting the tray I Theimproved tray may also be used either upon an open or closed car in the manner illustrated in Figure 6 with one pair of legs 11 hooked over the upper edge of the door of an open car or the bottom edge of the window opening in a closed car, the brace 14 in this case being extended and adjusted to a side face of the door to support the tray in the manner disclosed in Reissue Patent No. 18,249, dated November 10, 1931.

The tray disclosed here is capable of more effective stacking or nesting for shipment than those heretofore used. In Figure 7 the manner in which the trays stack is indicated. The off-set portions 12 of strips 12 of an upper tray rest upon the edges of a lower tray with the legs 11 snugly embracing the edges of the'lower tray and due to their inclination also embracing the upper portions of the legs of a lower tray. The off -set portions 12 of the strips 12 serve to space the trays in the stack sufficiently so that there will be no interference between the collapsed brace 14 of an upper tray and the upper surface of a lower tray.

To provide a service tray with means for holding a check in a readily accessibleposition where it will not become soiled or dampened by spilled contents of containers on the tray, a clip 18 may be provided. This clip may be secured as by riveting to the edge of the tray and may have an upwardly extending portion spaced from and curved substantially parallel to the usual rounded or beaded edge of the tray to provide a narrow groove into which one edge portion of a price check'l9 may be placed.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that a simple, effective service tray has been provided by the invention and modifications thereof may be resorted to without departing from the spirit thereof or the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:-

l. The combination with a service tray having upon a fiat surface, certain of said legs providing hook-like members extending downwardly beyond an edge of the tray for engaging over the edge of a vertical support, of a brace shiftably mounted upon the underside of said tray with respect to said hook-like members for engaging a side of said vertical support, said brace. in operative position extending below said legs but being collapsible to a position under the tray above the lower ends of said legs when not in use.

2. The combination with a service tray having comparatively short legs for supporting the tray upon a flat surface, certain of said legs providing hook-like members extending downwardly beyond an edge of the tray for engaging over the edge of a vertical support, of a brace shiftably mounted upon the underside of said tray with respect to said hook-like members for engaging a side of said vertical support, said brace in operative position extending below said legs but being collapsible to a position under the tray above the, lower ends of said legs when not in use, and off-set portions on the underside of the tray whereby when the trays are stacked the off-set portions on an upper tray rest upon .the edge of a lower tray and so space the trays as to prevent interference between the collapsed brace of the upper tray with the upper surface of the lower tray.

3. In combination with a curb service tray, legs composed of fiat metal bars extending outwardly at an acute angle to the vertical and so constructed that a pair of them may be inserted in the glass-receiving openingof a closed automobile and support the tray in a level position, the inclination of the legs'being such that they engage the glass in the opening below the window ledge and the edge of the ledge adjacent to the window groove.

4. In a curb service tray for closed automobiles, spaced legs composed of flat bars secured to the bottom of the tray and bent outwardly and downwardly at an acute angle to the vertical so as to be insertable in a window channel between the glass and the edge of the window ledge and support the tray horizontally, said legs extending beyond the edges of the tray and being so arranged that the supported tray lies wholly on one side of the path of the glass and does not interfere with the opening and closing movement of the glass.

5. In combination with a substantially rectangular curb service tray for closed automobiles, a pair of spaced, fiat legs having portions secured to the bottom of the tray, said legs extending beyond the edge of the tray and being bent outwardly at an acute angle to the vertical so as to be insertable into a window channel between the glass and the window ledge and support the tray horizontally and wholly on one side of the path of the glass with the window-ledge acting as a fulcrum for the legs.

6. A refreshment serving tray for use with motor vehicles comprising means adjacent one edge thereof for hooking into the window groove of the window of a closed motor vehicle, said means extending beyond said edge of the tray its so to position said edge when said means is hooked in said groove that the window pane of the motor vehicle may be in closed or partly closed positions while said tray is supported by engagement of said hooking means in said groove, and additional means associated with said tray for supporting said tray in a substantially horizontal position on a flat surface whereon refreshments may be placed on said tray for serving to occupants of said motor vehicle.

'7. A refreshment serving tray for use with motor vehicles comprising means adjacent one edge thereof for hooking into the window groove of the window of a closed motor vehicle, said means having a portion shaped to extend down between the window pane and one edge of said groove and being beyond said edge of the tray so to position said edge when said tray is hooked in said groove that the window pane of the motor vehicle may be in closed or partly closed positionswhile said tray is supported by engagement of said hooking means in said groove, and additional means associated with said tray for supporting said tray in a substantially horizontal position on a flat surface whereon refreshments may be placed on said tray for serving to occupants of said motor vehicle.

8. A refreshment serving tray for use with motor vehicles comprising leg means adjacent one edge thereof for hooking into the window groove of the window of a closed motor vehicle, said leg means extending outwardly and downwardly beyond an edge of said tray so to position said edge when said tray is hooked in said groove that the window pane of the motor vehicle may be in closed or partly closed positions while said tray is supported by engagement of said hooking leg means in said groove, and additional leg means associated with said tray for supporting said tray in a substantially horizontal position on a flat surface whereon refreshments may be placed on said tray for serving to occupants of said motor vehicle, said additional leg means also extending outwardly and downwardly beyond an edge of said tray whereby said trays may be stacked with the leg means of an upper tray embracing the edges of a lower tray.

9. The combination with a curb service-tray adapted to be rested solidlypn a flat surface Without rocking for placing refreshments thereon to be served to the occupants of an automobile of hooking means on one side of the tray comprising means extending outwardly and downwardly beyond an edge of the tray and adapted to be engaged in the window groove at the lower edge of an automobile window between an edge of said groove and the window pane whereby the window pane may be in closed or partly closed positions with the hooking means so engaged. I

10. The combination with a curb service tray adapted to be supported solidly without rocking on a flat surface of hooking means thereon extending downwardly from the tray and adapted to be engaged in the window groove at the lower edge of a vehicle window between an edge of said groove and the window pane to support said tray on said edge, said hooking means extending downwardly and outwardly at an acute angle to the vertical to support the tray in a substantially horizontal position by engagement of the upper inner portion of said hooking means with an edge of the groove and the lower outer portion of saidhooking means with the window pane.

11. The combination with a curb service tray of hooking means at one side of the tray extending beyond the edge of the tray for engaging in the groove at the lower edge, of an automobile window and a brace shiftably mounted on the under side of the tray for movement toward and from said hooking means and to and from engagement with a vertical surface of the automobile under said window and foldable to a position under the tray permitting placing the tray on a flat surface, and means for solidly supporting the tray on a fiat surface to receive refreshments thereon for serving to the occupants of the automobile.

12. The combination with a curb service tray adapted to be rested solidly on a flat surface without rocking for placing refreshments thereon to be served to the occupants of an automobile, of means at one side of said tray for hooking the same in the window groove of an automobile window, said hooking means having a downwardly directed portion for extending downwardly be-' tween an edge of the window groove and the window pane located in said groove, said downwardly extended portion being outwardly of said side of the tray whereby said tray may be mounted inside the automobile with said window pane in a closed or partly closed position.

13. The combination with a curb service tray adapted to be rested solidly on a fiat surface without rocking for placing refreshments thereon to be served to the occupants of an automobile, of means at one side of. said tray for hooking the same in the window groove of an automobile 00 window, said hooking means having a downwardly directed portion for extending downwardly between an edge of the window groove and the window pane located in said groove, said downwardly extended portion being outwardly of said side of the tray whereby said tray may be mounted inside the automobile with said window pane in a closed or partly closed position, and brace means associated with said tray for engaging the side wall of the automobile beneath said window, said hooking meansand said brace means being relatively adjustable transversely of the tray to permit proper engagement of the hooking means and brace rigidly to support the tray horizontally in different automobiles.

QWILLIAM L. McGINLEY 

